In the disclosure of the present invention reference is mostly made to the treatment of diabetes by delivery of insulin, however, this is only an exemplary field of use for the present invention.
Type 2 diabetes is a progressive disease in which β-cell function deteriorates. Initiating therapy with oral agents is a reasonable approach to take with most patients, the exception being patients with extreme hyperglycemia (fasting plasma glucose >250 mg/dl). These patients require insulin to lower glucose levels. Otherwise, starting with oral therapy can be very effective, especially in patients with a short duration of diabetes and, thus, relatively adequate β-cell function. However, during the course of the disease many patients sooner or later will need therapy with insulin. When determining whether a patient should be put on insulin therapy, it is helpful to look to the guidelines for glycemic control. The American Diabetes Association (ADA) and American College of Endocrinology (ACE) publish goals for A1C, postprandial glucose, and fasting/pre-prandial glucose. Most patients who are unable to achieve these goals using oral agents are candidates for insulin therapy.
One type of initial insulin therapy for Type 2 diabetics is to use once-daily injections with a long-acting insulin such as Levemir® from Novo Nordisk, often in combination with oral antidiabetic agents. However, to be successful, insulin therapy requires timely and appropriate titration of dosages. For example, in combination with oral antidiabetic agents it is recommended to initiate Levemir treatment with once daily administration at a dose of 10 U or 0.1-0.2 U/kg. The dose of Levemir should then be titrated based on individual patients' needs, e.g. based on average (3-7 measurements) self-measured pre-breakfast BG values. For example, for a calculated value of >10.0 mmol/L it is recommended to adjust the Levemir dose with +8 units, for a calculated value of 9.1-10.0 mmol/L it is recommended to adjust the Levemir dose with +6 units, for a calculated value of 8.1-9.0 mmol/L it is recommended to adjust the Levemir dose with +4 units, for a calculated value of 7.1-8.0 mmol/L it is recommended to adjust the Levemir dose with +2 units, and for a calculated value of 6.1-7.0 mmol/L it is recommended to adjust the Levemir dose with +2 units. If one BG measurement is 3.1-4.0 mmol/L it is recommended to adjust the Levemir dose with −2 units, and if one BG measurement is <3.1 mmol/L it is recommended to adjust the Levemir dose with −4 units.
The calculation of the average pre-breakfast BG values as well as the resulting Levemir dose adjustments may either be performed by the patient him/herself or by a doctor/nurse based on BG values supplied by the patient. As appears, such a regimen is both time-consuming as well as prone to mistakes. This said, self-titration regimens are considered to facilitate empowerment of patients, allowing them to become more involved in their treatment which may then result in improved glycaemic control.
Correspondingly, devices and systems have been provided in which recommendations are generated based on self-measured BG values by a pre-programmed algorithm, e.g. corresponding to the relatively simple titration regimen described above. Indeed, much more sophisticated algorithms can be implemented taking into account e.g. patient characteristics and other variable inputs, see e.g. U.S. 2009/0253970. The algorithm may be in the form of software adapted to run on different platforms, e.g. PC, PDA or smartphone, or it may be embedded in a device such as a blood glucose meter (BGM), see e.g. U.S. 2010/0016700.
Although such automatically generated recommendations may be of great help to both medical staff and patients, the person responsible for the patient's diabetes treatment may be left uncertain about the recommendations made, just as it may be uncertain to what degree the patient actually uses the provided help.
Having regard to the above, it is an object of the present invention to provide systems and methods supporting cost-effective optimization and control of patient self-titration of a medical regimen.